How a Cat came of age (A Catwoman origin story) Chapter 18 : Entering the Spider's web

As the three of them sat together at a table in an upscale restaurant in Mayfair, the very subtle, yet palpable tension occasionally interrupted the flow of the conversation. Arthur Garcia, the young man sitting right across the table from Selina whom Holly had introduced as her boyfriend, tried to put on the appearance on nonchalance. But Selina could tell he was nervous. Good.

"Selina, Arthur has majored in Business Studies and Finance. He plans to help run his family business once he graduates." said Holly Robinson. Sitting beside her boyfriend, she was clearly trying to "sell" him to her big sister.

"Is that right?" Selina asked, taking a sip of her chardonnay, "and what kind of business is your family in Arthur?"

"Oh...we deal in precious stones. You know.... diamonds, rubies, saphires."

Bullshit.

"Holly tells me your family is in New York"

"Yes, SoHo. She's told me so much about you! She says you specialise in security systems. That's so cool! I love how more and more women are making it into STEM."

Earlier, Holly had briefed Selina on the backstory she had concocted for her. A software engineer who designed security systems for companies, banks etc. And that she was a freelancer because no one could afford to have her on their payroll.

A good story. A lie tempered with just the right amount of truth.

The trio continued to make small talk, interrupted by uncomfortable silences caused by Selina's gaze and it's potential to burn a hole into Arthur. These silences would be broken by Holly who grew increasingly desperate for her big sister and her boyfriend to have a friendly interaction.

Sensing her sister's discomfort, Selina decided to cut the slick some slack. For the time being, at least. She actually smiled as she shook Arthur's hand when their meeting came to an end.

Arthur kissed Holly and held the door open for her as she got into Selina's car. As they drove to the flat she had bought years ago, Holly finally asked Selina what was wrong.

"Selina, just spill it! You don't like Arthur, do you?"

"Holly, how long have you known this guy?"

"About four months."

"And in these four months, you think you've gotten to know him well enough to trust him?"

"Selina, what are you implying?"

"I'm implying that you just need to be a little careful. Maybe this Arthur Garcia really is a great guy and I'm mistaken in thinking he's a skilled manipulator. But what if I'm not? Because to me, he looks like someone who knows exactly how to get a young woman hooked to him. Look how hard you've fallen for him in just a few months."

Holly was getting angry now. She knew Selina worried about her and wanted to protect her, but right then she only felt insulted. She felt as though Selina still saw her as a little girl who was incapable of looking out for herself.

"Selina, it wouldn't kill you to give me some credit." She said indignantly, "I'm not some naive little girl who can be manipulated with some sweet words. Arthur has treated me with nothing but love and respect. He's lived up to every expectation that you told me I should have of a man. So why can't you just believe that he's a good guy?"

Selina had had no intention of implying that Holly was naive. She did feel frustrated that her sister couldn't see just how smooth Arthur was. How he always knew exactly what to say, what to do, what facial expressions to wear. That didn't exactly speak to a person's ingenuity. It screamed manipulation and narcissism.

"Holly, has he never seemed too good to be true?"

"I know it's hard for you to believe Selina, but good people do exist."

"Holly I know.... I just have a bad feeling about him...."

"And I have a great feeling about him. Why can't you trust my judgement for once?"

Realizing that the argument would go nowhere, Selina conceded.

"Ok Holly.... just promise me that you'll be careful."

Holly took Selina's hand and smiled.
"I'll be fine Selina. I can take care of myself. You didn't raise no bitch!"

Selina managed to laugh at that last comment.

"I know you take care of yourself Holly. And I don't think you're naive. I just worry sometimes."

"Well don't. I promise, everything will be fine."

Selina and Holly spent the rest of the day shopping and sight seeing. Though she had been to London many times, Selina had never taken the time to actually experience the city, so this was nice. Especially because she was being shown around by her little sister. She couldn't help but marvel at how much Holly had grown. How mature, cultured and well read she was now! Selina felt her heart swell with pride at just how far Holly Robinson had come.

Then came the time for them to part. Holly had her arms around Selina, as she made her promise to come visit in March the next year.

"Selina, I wanted us to spend your twenty-fifth birthday together. But you were in the Himalayas. I really, really want you to spend your twenty-sixth here. Promise me you'll come!"

"Ok, kid. I promise. Fourteenth of March next year, I'm going to be here in London with you. No matter what.

On her flight back to Paris, Selina tried to put her worries about Holly to rest. The girl has been through so much in her young life. She had lost her father, her mother had allowed her to be abused. And when she finally got away from that, she fell into into the claws of predators. Sure, Selina had rescued her from that and given her a good life. But Selina herself would admit that she wasn't the most affectionate person. Holly had been deprived of love, starved of affection her entire life. No wonder she would fall for a guy who made her feel as though he loved her. Selina didn't doubt that Holly was strong, but still wondered if Arthur knew just how vulnerable she was and if he would use it against her.

For his own sake that Arthur Garcia better be good to her.

In time, her mind took her to the conversation she had had with Gwen just a few days prior. They had talked on the phone the day Selina left India.

"So, what can you tell me about them?" Selina had asked the experienced and resourceful fence.

"Spider. I've heard of them Selina, I just didn't think they were real!" Gwen had replied. Her voice displayed genuine surprise, even a bit of trepidation.

"Oh! Why do you say that?"

"Because Sel, this is an entity that you only hear rumours about. And no one I've heard from about them could confirm if they actually exist or are some kind of urban legend. But if they're real, one thing's for sure : these are the best thieves the world has never heard of. And Selina....?"

"What is it Gwen?"

"They're probably involved in more than just thieving. You see, the eight legs of the spider represent eight kinds of illegal activities they're involved in. This includes assassination, drug trafficking, kidnapping.... or so I've heard."

"Any word on who runs it?"

"I once heard this fence from Milan talk about how it's some woman married to an American politician. Of course there's no way to confirm this."

"I see.... Thanks Gwen!"

"Anytime! But Selina? I really think you need to be careful if you're gonna cross paths with these people. I've heard the most gruesome, horrifying stories about why they've done to people. I'm talking acid baths, scalping, bleeding them out with a thousand cuts kind of shit. And if even half of what I've heard is true, these are not the kind of people to mess around with."

"Duly noted. Thanks Gwen." Selina said, rather nonchalance before asking "how's Maggie?"

"Oh she's been doing pretty well in college, made the Dean's list. Her grades are excellent. She got a lot going for her Selina. Not to mention how happy she's been with her guy."

"Mr Good Boy. He's treating her well?"

"Oh yeah. He's been nothing but nice to her. They seem very much in love."

Selina smiled contentedly as she thought of her sister's happiness. Love, companionship, commitment..... she didn't want any of this for herself. But she knew Maggie did. And felt the purest joy when she learned that her little sister was going to have all of it.

Selina had also spent a considerable amount of time contemplating her own future. Did she want to get involved in this "Spider" business? She could just keep going solo.

But even if she did, if she was going to be the greatest thief who ever lived, she would certainly cross paths with this organisation someday or another. May as well get to know exactly what she would be up against.

Besides, she wanted this life. A life of danger and unpredictability. She craved that feeling of being in free fall and knowing nothing would save her but her own skills. She lived to cheat death.

Sure, she had run from the Yakuza. But she was a different woman back then. Not nearly as strong, as sure of herself as she was today.

Would she really give up an opportunity to go toe to toe with a dangerous and shady organisation that most people didn't know existed?

Do pigs fly?

After landing in Paris Selina Kyle, or rather Sophie Lemarr, went straight to the Regina Louvre. It was nearly seven in the morning, the same time as when she had arrived at hotel a week earlier to meet mysterious and interesting Frank Baz.

She wasn't really surprised when she saw him waiting for her right in front of the hotel. She had considered using another disguise and identity, but since she had already decided to do this, she didn't see the point in wasting time playing games. At least, not yet.

Selina hadn't figured out what she was going to do with the "Spider".

Gain their trust and then rob them blind? That might be fun.

Actually work with them and rise within their ranks? Nah! That even sounded boring.

She reckoned she would see what they were all about and decide her course of action accordingly.

"Hello, beautiful!" Frank said, kissing Sophia's hand, "I expected you to be wearing a different disguise."

"I decided to be generous." She replied "now that the pleasantries are out of the way let's talk business, shall we?"

"Of course! I don't believe in wasting time either. If you would just step into the limousine, my dear." Frank said, pointing at the white limo parked just a few feet away.

OK. At least they had style.

Selina got in, not worrying about getting into a car with a stranger.

"I'm hoping at some point you will return my jewels to me." She said, reminding Frank of what he had taken from her. What he had stolen from her, to be more precise.

"Your jewels are safe, Sophia. I assure you. If that is your actual name..."

"For now." Sophia replied, simple and curt.

Frank Baz decided to chat her up. He discussed with Sophia art history, music, gemology, philosophy, politics. A very engaging conversation that she thoroughly enjoyed. But she was careful to respond to him in a way that revealed next to nothing about herself. She had a feeling that she did not want this man in her head.

Their conversation kept flowing as the Limousine came to a halt at the periphery of Porte de la Chapelle. One of the poorest parts of the city. The driver didn't get out and simply drove the vehicle away. Frank offered to carry Sophia's bag for her, but she declined.

He led her to a run down looking hotel, one that Selina wasn't sure would even qualify for a one star.

Selina thought about asking Frank exactly where he was taking her. But didn't, as she doubted he would answer her. Especially with people around.

Frank tossed a miniscule cloth bag to the guy sitting at the front desk, who handed Frank a black cloth sack with a drawstring. No words were exchanged. Then he and Sophia went further into the hotel and reached an elevator with the sign "out of order" pasted to it's door. The door did open however, and Frank beckoned Sophia to get it. As soon as she entered, Frank put the cloth sack over her head and pulled the drawstring.

"Forgive me, beautiful. But this is important." He said, before asking "you can breathe, yes?"

"Yeah" Sophia replied, not resisting. She wouldn't have expected Frank to let her see where he was taking her.

She was deprived of sight but her other senses were highly developed.

Selina heard Frank press the buttons on the elevator. Not one, but several. He had pressed a combination, and she was able to guess which numbers he had pressed. She committed the combination to memory.

The elevator began to decend. Moving much faster and smoother than it's rickety appearance would have one believe. When Selina was sure they were way past the hotel's basement, she finally spoke.

"This is where you tell me where we're going, Frank."

"I'm taking you to meet our boss. Morella."

"Morella?" Selina wondered if the rumour Gwen had heard about the head of the Spider being the wife of a US politician were true.

"Yes, that's her name as far as you are concerned."

The arrived at at what felt to Selina like an underground tunnel. Frank then helped her into a small two seater car, the began to drive. Using her orientation skills, she was able to figure out the direction in which they travelled. They went in a beeline, not making any turns.

The drive wasn't long, however. And after about ten minutes, they came to a halt. Frank helped Sophia out, and made her walk a few steps.

"I assume your boss is expecting me" Sophia asked.

She knew she was expected, but she wanted to hear how her voice sounded in this place. And the way bounced off of the surface in front of her told her she was facing a stone wall. One that couldn't have been more that a foot thick. Meaning there was a hollow space at the opposite side of it.

"She is." Frank answered.

Sophia then heard what sounded like a fingerprint scanner, followed by the sound of the wall sliding.

Finally, the sack came off and Sophia was in a well lit and very modern looking hallway.

There was also a man. Tall, brown hair and just as good looking as Frank and possibly a few years younger than him.

"Sophia, meet Roland." Frank said, as this Roland extended his hand to her.

"Pleasure" Sophia said, shaking Roland's hand.

"So you are the rare jewel Frank has discovered. Welcome!" the man said in a charming French accent.

"Thank you" Selina said, noticing a slight change in Frank's body language around Roland. She couldn't quite pin point what it was though.

The long hallway, lined with guards and security cameras, led them to an enormous chamber. Upon entering, the first thing Selina saw were all the huge screens on the walls. Some played news items, some real time footage of various cities. She immediately recognised Tokyo. They were observing the Hasigawa residence of all places.

OK. These people might be a bigger deal than she had expected.

In the middle of the room was a large round table. The woman sitting on the rotating chair turned it around and faced Sophia and Frank.

'Trying to pull off a Bond villain act, are we' Selina thought to herself.

Right beside Bond villain, stood a young woman, probably a couple of years younger than Selina. Short, thin, black hair and spectacled. She held a palmtop* in her hand, and looked like a stereotypical secretary.

"Madame Morella, may I introduce Sophia Lemarr. The woman who single handedly bested our best thieves and defeated some of our better fighters in combat? She is also the one who robbed Villa de Moreau."

"Greetings, Sophia!" Morella finally spoke. She was a petite woman, no more than five feet three inches. She had black hair and her face was covered in white face paint, her lips painted black. With her make up, black eyes and her black suit, she rather looked a bit like a spider herself. Although, Selina was willing to bet her hair was dyed and she was wearing contacts. Not a bad disguise, if slightly on the nose.

"Nice to finally meet you." Sophia said "nice place you got down here."

"Frank here is quite impressed with your talents. Now I'll give you a chance to impress me. Within the next twenty four hours, you will plan a heist. One that, when executed, brings a smile to my face. After you have planned and successfully executed this heist, you will be accepted into our organisation."

"And.... what's the alternative?" Sophia asked, though she already knew the answer.

"My dear, let's hope it doesn't come to that.", Morella replied, before turning to the young woman beside her, "Maven, take Miss Lemarr to her quarters and see that she has everything she needs."

"Of course, Madame!" Maven replied in a sweet voice, before addressing to Sophia, "this way please!". Her accent was American.

"Sophia!" Morella said as they approached a door at the other end of the room from which she and Frank had entered, "The only reason you have made it to this room so quickly is because Frank sees great potential in you. And because I trust Frank's judgement. You have a golden opportunity here. Don't waste it."

"I never waste an opportunity." Sophia shot back, "don't worry."

Maven drove Sophia to an apartment building in Gros Caillou. She showed her the luxurious three bedroom flat she would be staying in.

Maven handed Selina two small jewellery boxes and said "I was told to give these to you."

Sophia opened them and was satisfied to than they held the huge emerald and ruby Frank had taken from her.

Maven also gave Sophia a phone number scribbled on a piece of paper, and told her "if you need anything at all Sophia, do let me know."

"Sure. So.... Maven. You got a last name?"

"Armon", came the brief reply.

"A French name. But you have an American accent."

"Madame Morella hasn't instructed me to share any personal information with you. So, of there's nothing else...."

"Hmmm.... Good little secretary! No darling, there's nothing else. Thank you."

Selina looked around the apartment after Maven left. She was sure the place was bugged. There were probably people waiting to take her out should she try anything fishy.

Surprisingly, Selina Kyle had no intention of doing anything of that sort. She was going to make good on what Morella had asked her to do. Plan and execute an extraordinary heist.

And she knew exactly what that heist was going to be. Something she had fantasised about, but hadn't really gotten around to seriously considering. Something big enough for her to require a crew of skilled thieves. The SPIDER would provide the said crew and Selina would be able to pull off a score that made her spine tingle.

She got to work right after getting some food into her belly. By the next morning, she had it all figured out.

At about eight am, Sophia Lemarr sat across the table from Morella and explained to her what she planned to do.

Free ports. Offshore storage fascilities that are completely tax free. It was originally a system meant to prevent the taxation of goods that are in transit. Just as with everything else, the world's ultra rich twisted it to fit their needs. And a system that was meant to prevent double taxation was manipulated into becoming a system where items owned by the rich are never taxed. These items include art work, antiques, jewels, wines, classic cars.... you name it.

There are dozens of these free ports all over the world. Used to launder money, dodge taxes and even fund terrorism. One of them is the Geneva Freeport. A fortress with state of the art security that held riches worth tens of billions of dollars. Icing on the cake : Switzerland would not recognise this place as a part of it's territory until the year 2007. This was offshore, where anything goes.

This is the place Sophia Lemarr proposed to rob.

Morella didn't smile. Just looked at Sophia intently as she laid out her plans.

"First, you're going to form a shell company and buy Da Vinci's Salvator Mundi that's going to be auctioned in Rome just eight days from now. I'll go to the auction and get it for said shell company. Then, I'm going to place a miniscule tracker into the painting...."

Sophia and Frank travelled to Rome in order to attend the auction and get the prized painting. Sophia's plan was quite simple. The Geneva Free Port has all kinds of security on can possibly imagine. It was a fortress that could repel even the most skilled of thieves. What they would not expect is the facility being robbed by one of the billionaires who used it to store their tax free "loot". For why would those people jeopardise the place that enabled them to store rare art, wines and other luxury goods, keeping them out of reach from anyone else and causing their monetary value to rise exponentially. They would then be able to sell these rare treasures for a price far greater than what they themselves had paid.

Why would one of them chose to ruin such a good loophole that not only saved them from the horrors of taxes but also enabled them to make criminally high profits?

Sophia and Frank went to Rome and secured the painting for a price of seventy million USD. It was then sent to the infamous Geneva Freeport. But not before Sophia deftly placed a pin sized tracker into the frame. It was covered in aluminium foil, until it got inside the facility.

A team of "officials" from the freeport came to pick up the prized artwork. Sophia knew which one she would be impersonating. The one nearly six feet tall, but rather skinny. A man of about forty years of age, named Micheal Asisi. She wouldn't have to put on too many mobility obstructing prosthetics on her body.

To make sure she would catch Micheal alone, she had one of Frank's thieves discreetly pour a laxative into his coffee. When poor Micheal went to the men's room, he was surprised to find his own doppelganger in one of the stalls. Before he could react, the Doppelganger hit him in a pressure point on his neck, causing him to lose consciousness.

Morella had suggested that the man be killed, but Sophia convinced her it was unnecessary. Micheal would simply be held captive until the heist was complete. He would then once again be rendered unconscious and then left out in the street. Someone was bound to help him!

Meanwhile, Sophia disguised as Michael and masterfully imitating his voice and mannerisms had reached the ground floor of the Geneva Freeport. Michael's role would end right there. But Sophia had been able to take out the tini tracker, remove the aluminium foil, and then place the tracker back in, before the painting was handed over to be stored.

This facility was enormous, storing hundreds of thousands of painting, varying in their cultural significance and monetary worth. They were also segregated and stored accordingly. Sophia, and her crew which included Frank, would need to know exactly which part of the building held artwork worth over fifty million.

Sophia pulled a disappearing act and suddenly Michael's coworkers were left wondering where he had gone.

She, and three other thieves, one of whom she had knocked out at the Villa de Moreau, followed the tracker and were able to pinpoint where "their" painting was kept.

Getting in was difficult. But not impossible.
But only because Selina wasn't doing it alone. For the first time in her career as a thief, she truly appreciated how advantageous it was to have a team of skilled thieves under her command.

They, mainly Sophia, made quick work of the military trained guards they ran into.

Sophia Lemarr and her team escaped with over one billion USD worth of artwork. A total of twelve paintings, including the Salvator Mundi. The four thieves escaped in different directions. And reached a Spider hideout located in Rome hours later.

The heist made headlines across the world. A part of Selina felt very bitter that the news channels and papers didn't even mention her.

But how would they know it was her?

And did she want them to know?

Sophia Lemarr, however, did manage to put a smile on Morella's painted face.

She was welcomed into the ranks of the Spider's thievery wing.

"Bravo! Bravo my dear!" Morella had exclaimed, practically drooling at the sight of the loot, "welcome aboard!".

She shook Sophia's hand before snapping her fingers at Maven. The secretary immediately knew what to do and fetched a briefcase, before handing it to Sophia.

Over the next few months, Sophia would pull many high risk and high stakes scores for the spider. Resulting in Morella becoming very fond of her. She was paid handsomely. Millions for each heist.

If only Madame Morella knew that Sophia Lemarr saw a few measly millions as an insult to her talents. But she was willing to play the long game.

She continued to impress Morella and earn the respect, and in some cases resentment, of the other thieves. She also befriended Maven, who suffered from an acute lack of good female friends along with a lack of empathy and compassion from her boss. Sophia could tell that the poor girl was desperate for companionship, and that she would come in handy. Being the woman who had access to some well guarded parts of Morella, staying close to her could get Selina some very useful information on the Spider and on it's leader.

In the weeks that followed, Selina learned much about her employer. The rumours Gwen had heard were true, and then some. The Spider's other "legs" included terrorism, money laundering, trafficking.

She also found out Morella's identity. Her real name was Raina Creel. The world knew her as a globetrotting philanthropist, and the wife of US Congressman Edmond Creel.

Selina had all intentions of announcing her arrival into the world of crime by robbing this organisation blind. She just needed to wait for the perfect opening.

She would not have to wait for too long though.

Frank Baz had an appointment in the same building as Sophia's. As did several other Spider employees. Only Frank's place was the penthouse, and much larger and more luxurious.

One evening, Sophia was calling him to let him know she had acquired the blueprints to the archives of the Louvre. He wasn't picking up for some reason, so she decided to go over to his place.

She walked in on him.

Their eyes met.

A secret was shared, an understanding was reached.

And that was how Sophia Lemarr and Frank Baz came to plan a grand robbery. That of Diego Messina, the wealthiest and most ruthless mafioso in all of Italy.